Tag Archives: Rachmaninoff

Valentina Lisitsa’s Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No.3 with LSO released by Decca

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On 3 December 2012 another piece of Valentina Lisitsa’s long awaited Rachmaninoff recordings with the London Symphony Orchestra was released by Decca: Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No.3. Earlier on, in October 2012, Decca released Piano Concerto No.2. In January/February 2013 Decca will release Lisitsa’s recordings of Piano Concerti No.1 and No.4 and also the Paganini Variations. The four concerti and the variations are initially released separately and online in mp3-quality. Around March 2013 the complete set will be boxed and released on CD. Below a few videos concerning the Rach#3 concerto as played by Valentina Lisitsa, some of them material from the above mentioned and now being released 2009-2010 Rachmaninoff Project. Two of the videos below show some of my own footage.


Decca-promo on Valentina Lisitsa’s channel


Hey, I also did a short promo 🙂


Rachmaninoff Concerto No.3 “Solo” version, 1st movement (with ossia Cadenza )


Rachmaninoff Concerto No.3 “Solo” version, 2nd movement


Rachmaninoff Concerto No.3 “Solo” version, 3rd movement


Valentina Lisitsa / Solotake Recordings Rachmaninoff Concerto No.3, filmed by me at Abbey Road Studios

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On Sunday 28 October 2012: free LIVE-stream Valentina Lisitsa concert Rachmaninoff PC#3

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Here’s a reminder of a free live-webstream that’s not to be missed, as it involves a perfect musical combination: composer Sergei Rachmaninoff and pianist Valentina Lisitsa.

On Sunday 28 October 2012, at 2:15pm CET, Valentina Lisitsa performs the Rachmaninoff No.3 Piano Concerto with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra in De Doelen in Rotterdam. I’ll be in the Rotterdam audience, but for evryone who can’t be there in Rotterdam, the live-stream – via this link – offers a unique opportunity to witness and enjoy exceptional Rachmaninoff performer Valentina Lisitsa live in concert. Not-to-be-missed!

To give a taste of her exquisite Rachmaninoff #3-playing, the two videos below show some of Valentina’s ‘minus orchestra’-rehearsing, filmed by me in December 2009 in London’s Abbey Road Studios.

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Valentina Lisitsa release Rachmaninoff 2nd Piano Concerto on October 22nd, 2012

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It took a while, but it looks like Valentina Lisitsa’s long awaited release of her Rachmaninoff Project is on its way now. In 2009-2010 she recorded the four piano concerti and the Paganini Variations with the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Michael Francis. I reported extensively on this fabulous undertaking on my website and on YouTube. On Amazon, Valentina’s recording of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No.2 is now announced – right here – for release on October 22nd.

And how about the release of the other recordings? On October 10th, Valentina herself stated on her Facebook wall that after the MP3-release of Piano Concerto No.2 on October 22nd, the release of the other recordings (also as MP3) will follow later on this year. She added that around February-March 2013, the complete set will be released on CD.

I was present at the recording sessions in London’s Abbey Road Studios and it was a unique and unforgettable musical experience. Yes, such was the power of Valentina’s performing!


Rachmaninoff Project, December 2009, Valentina and me in the Abbey Road Studios

For those interested in how the ‘Rachy project’ came about, I’d like to refer to my documentary on YouTube, embedded here below.

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On my YT-channel: Valentina Lisitsa talks about Rachmaninoff in video with all new material

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Yesterday I published a new video of pianist Valentina Lisitsa, containing footage of not formerly published segments of an interview with her about – primarily – Rachmaninoff. I revisited and reconsidered some of my unpublished footage and photos, resulting in this new video, I thought it would be worthwhile to share it with the YouTube audience.


Still from my video (at 12’54”) and from another era it seems… Valentina as a youngster playing chess.

Earlier on I already produced and published on YouTube a documentary on Valentina’s Rachmaninoff Project with the London Symphony Orchestra. The fabulous recordings done in the Abbey Road Studios in 2009 and 2010 will be released later on in 2012 by Decca.

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Pianist Valentina Lisitsa LIVE-streams her Royal Albert Hall concert-rehearsals

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From Sunday June 3rd until Friday June 8th, YouTube’s most popular classical pianist, Valentina Lisitsa, is once more streaming her rehearsals LIVE via her Ustream-channel. To watch click here.
Valentina's Ustream channel
Valentina Lisitsa’s rehearsing is a not-to-be missed event for anyone with a serious interest in classical piano playing. From her home in North Carolina Valentina is rehearsing the scheduled programme of her upcoming Royal Albert Hall concert. She’s done this before and up till now she’s the only classical musician that I know of who’s sharing this preparation process in a live event for a worldwide audience. This is really fascinating and a unique opportunity to witness Valentina Lisitsa getting prepared for this major event on June 19th in London.

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Piano sensation Valentina Lisitsa highlighted in dutch national press

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(click on picture to enlarge)
An article on Friday 20 January 2012 about virtuoso classical pianist and YouTube-sensation Valentina Lisitsa in dutch national newspaper De Volkskrant. Valentina plays in The Netherlands, on Sunday 22 january 2012 in Delft and on Friday 27 January 2012 in Haarlem. The article in De Volkskrant shows that more and more big media finally begin to recognise what I (see my videos of Valentina on the web) and so many people on YouTube have known for years already… the unique stature and greatness of Valentina! 🙂

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From SD to HD: facelift for a Valentina Lisitsa promo video

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My video Valentina Lisitsa: a somehow impossible combination of Backhaus and Argerich, published in March 2010 – and having more than 47.000 views on 13 November 2011, when this message was published – deserved a remake, a promotion from SD to HD.
Here’s the ‘makeover’, published on YouTube on 12 November 2011. Play the clip in 1080p to see the best result in High Definition.

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Valentina Lisitsa plays Rachmaninoff #1 in Duisburg & Köln in December 2010

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Some stunning playing in this blog by Valentina Lisitsa. Two recordings of the cadenza in Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto #1: first a solotake filmed by me, then another take of this cadenza – filmed by Val’s husband Alexei Kuznetsoff and at that point with the LSO around 🙂 Both takes filmed at Abbey Road Studios, London, September 2009.
In December 2010 Valentina plays the Rachmaninoff piano concerto #1 twice in Germany with the WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln conducted by Jukka-Pekka Saraste: in Duisburg on 9 December and in Köln on 10 December.


An exquisite solotake – filmed by me – of the cadenza in Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No.1


And another exquisite take – filmed by Alexei, and now ’rounded’ by the LSO at start and finish 🙂 – of the cadenza in Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No.1

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